Turnout critical in race for local judgeship

Wednesday

Nov 28, 2012 at 6:52 PM

BATON ROUGE — While primary results and new fundraising figures keep the contest for the local Court of Appeals seat competitive on the surface, the campaigns expect turnout to be the biggest factor in the Dec. 8 runoff.

Jeremy AlfordCapitol Correspondent

BATON ROUGE — Primary results and new fundraising figures keep the contest for a local appeals court seat competitive on the surface, but the campaigns expect turnout to be the biggest factor in the Dec. 8 runoff.District Judge William C. DuPont, a Democrat from Plaquemine, and former state Rep. Mitch Theriot, a Raceland Republican, are vying for the Division B judge’s seat on the state 1st Circuit Court of Appeal.The victor will replace Judge Jimmy Gaidry of Bourg, who isn't eligible for another term because he turned 70 this year, which disqualifies him from seeking re-election under age restrictions. The local district includes Terrebonne, St. Mary, Lafourche, Assumption, Ascension, Iberville, West Baton Rouge and Pointe Coupee parishes. The court examines decisions from lower courts, and its proceedings typically involve civil, criminal and family matters. In the primary held earlier this month, DuPont led a four-candidate field with 38 percent of the vote. Theriot grabbed the second runoff spot with 33 percent. Overall, DuPont earned 71,821 votes to Theriot's 62,884. But there also were two other GOP candidates aside from Theriot — Chris Erny of Houma and Mark Plaisance of Thibodaux. Between Erny and Plaisance, another 59,964 votes were cast throughout the district, which Theriot, as a fellow native of the Terrebonne-Lafourche area, is hoping to pick up. The goal is shared by DuPont, who won everywhere in the eight-parish district during the primary, except Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes. Theriot overwhelmingly won his native Lafourche Parish, but he lost Terrebonne to Erny by 3,200 votes. Additionally, neighboring St. Mary Parish fell to DuPont, although Theriot pulled into the second spot roughly 2,000 votes behind. If there's a battleground parish, it could be voter-rich Ascension, near the northern side of the district. DuPont fielded 17,297 votes there, and Theriot trailed by 628 votes. Erny and Plaisance cobbled together 12,196 votes in Ascension.While the numbers offer a glimpse into what the runoff might hold, Pearson Cross, political science professor at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, said in some ways the numbers won't apply at all. That's because the runoff is the only election on the ballot in some parishes, and there won't be a major draw, like the presidential contest, to lure huge numbers of voters. “I would expect turnout to plummet for this particular race,” Cross said. “The rule of thumb in political races is the more prominent the position being contested, the greater the turnout. We've seen this illustrated year after year. And, unfortunately, there aren't many people tuned into a court of appeals race.” A little more than a week before the primary, DuPont had roughly $60,000 in the bank and had very minimal Election Day expenditures. He also reported $17,000 in donations last week that were not included in the tally, mostly from Baton Rouge-area lawyers. Theriot's latest filing came this past weekend, and it showed his campaign with $34,800 in the bank, including $25,750 worth of donations raised since the election. What candidates spend on television and advertising is another indication of name recognition and standing, said Joshua Stockley, a political science professor at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. “From an insider's perspective, it means you have a well-funded campaign and you have the means to promote yourself,” Stockley said. “Television is by far and away the most expensive way to do that.”From August through October, DuPont spent more than $134,000 on advertising with Charter, HTV in Houma, KWJB in Morgan City, and WAFB and WBRZ in Baton Rouge. In late October and earlier this month, Theriot spent $14,300 with KWBJ, Charter and HTV, as well as more than $4,000 on radio ads with Sunburst Media in Houma and Coastal Broadcasting in Larose. Since the primary, DuPont has reported only one local donor to his campaign, Conrad Williams III of Houma, who contributed $500. His largest donors during the same timeframe include Fin, Fowl and Wild Beat Sports Club of Baton Rouge; GMS of Baton Rouge; and Arnold and Itkin LLP of Houston. All gave $5,000 each to DuPont's campaign. Local donors for the Theriot campaign since the primary election include Bollinger Shipyards of Lockport, $2,500; CHAND LLC of Mathews, $1,000; and G&L Rentals of Houma, $500. Theriot's largest contributor since the primary is the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, which not only endorsed his campaign, but also gave it $15,000 through four of its political action committees on Nov. 16.

Jeremy Alford can be reached at jeremy@jeremyalford.com.

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